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Casino gives retiree disputed payout

PENNSYLVANIA – As reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer: "After days of unwelcome national media attention, Philadelphia Park Casino Saturday night paid the disputed $102,000 that a Feasterville slots player said he had coming to him.

"But Stephen Wilkinson, 56, a retired carpenter, said the jackpot was in his hand for 'about two minutes.' His wife of 25 years, Nancy, grabbed the check for safekeeping.

"…Last Monday, Wilkinson was wagering two quarters at a time on a Wheel of Fortune machine when the video monitor flashed a message that he had won the $102,000.

"But employees at the Bensalem racetrack casino told him it was a mistake - a malfunction, they said, of the in-house computer system the casino uses for cash prizes and promotions. The slot machine itself was not faulty.

"…Wilkinson filed a complaint with the Pennsylvania Casino Control Board and said he would hold out for the $102,000. Gaming-industry experts nationally said it would have been hard under casino regulations in most states for Wilkinson to force PhiladelphiaPark to pay for a mistake.

"…Friday night, Wilkinson said, a casino executive called him at home and said that after an investigation Philadelphia Park had decided to pay him the full amount as a goodwill gesture…"

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